About 20 inmates picked up fish carcasses along several miles of Brevard County beaches. Wearing striped uniforms, white surgical masks and baby-blue rubber gloves, Brevard County Jail inmates picked up rotting fish and put them into plastic garbage bags along the seaweed line. It's a way to get out from behind bars as they pay their debts to society, regardless of the smell.

Spessard Holland Beach Park was littered with tens of thousands of dead fish. Volunteers with Keep Brevard Beautiful and others were among those cleaning up Melbourne Beach on Thursday. TIM SHORTT/ FLORIDA TODAY

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"We'll go out and do anything the county needs us to do," Corporal Sherman Davis of the Brevard County Sheriff's Office, said from a dune crossover at Pelican Beach Park in Satellite Beach. "It's not as bad today. I think with the rain and wind it helps with the smell."

The latest carcasses to wash up show the toxic tide is beginning to kill deeper sea creatures, as well as the mullet, mackerel, menhaden and ladyfish that have been washing up in the past two weeks.

On Thursday, residents in Melbourne Shores woke to some dead eels scattered among several other marine species that appeared to be relatively newer additions to the litany of species already washing up dead since red tide struck Brevard a few weeks ago.

The red tide began over a year ago in Southwest Florida, eventually making its way to the Space Coast. Biologists aren't sure how long the algae bloom will last here.

Tests this week found "high" levels of red tide at Surf Road in Melbourne Beach (sample taken on Oct. 22) and in the Indian River Lagoon at Long Point Park Park, near Sebastian Inlet (sample taken on Oct. 23).

The toxic algae hit “medium” concentrations this week in these same general areas but extended farther south to Martin County, FWC said in its Oct. 24 update.

In all, red tide has spread along most of Florida's east coast, from Volusia to Miami-Dade counties. “Relative to last week, red tide concentrations increased in parts of Brevard, St. Lucie and Martin counties and decreased in most of Broward County," FWC's update said.

Red tide is even affecting the upcoming election. On Wednesday, Brevard County Supervisor of Elections Lori Scott said there will be no early voting at the Irene H. Canova Park Clubhouse in Indian Harbour Beach. Instead, there will be early voting at the Satellite Beach Public Library, 751 Jamaica Blvd.

Scott said workers setting up the Canova Park Clubhouse voting site were feeling the respiratory effects of the red tide, so she moved the voting location for the comfort of the polling site staff and voters coming there.

Waymer is environmental reporter at FLORIDA TODAY.

Contact Waymer at 321-242-3663

or jwaymer@floridatoday.com.

Twitter: @jwayenviro

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